Fabric for Fussy Cutting

I did not fussy cut any of the shapes for my version of the Case of the Stranger in Margaritaville mystery quilt because I did not have a fabric in my stash that I thought would work.

The key to Inklingo No Waste Fussy Cutting is finding the right fabric!

This method is similar to Stack n Whack™ and One Block Wonder. The fabric determines how happy you will be with the results.

 

This is an old Kona Bay design. (2012)

I love fussy cutting, so I decided to audition it for the Key West Beauty 6 inch diamonds.

 

First, I measured the repeat in the fabric parallel to the selvage. This one is 11.375 inches (11 3/8) after washing.

Then I checked the Catalogue of Shapes to see if any of the diamond layouts for Key West 6 inch diamonds would fit in the repeat without a lot of waste.

 

Hooray! If I print 5.5 x 11.25, I get 12 diamonds, so I could print 8 identical sheets to get 96 diamonds (12 sets of 8 identical diamonds).

There would only be a tiny sliver (1/8 inch) between the identical sheets of fabric if they are laid out parallel to the selvage.

(There is an article about fussy cutting on QuiltingHub with more illustrations, if you need to visualize this.)

I need to make sure I have at least 8 repeats. If I cut them all in a row, (8 sheets of FP parallel to the selvage), I would need about 96 inches or about 2.75 yards. If I have less than that, I would look for identical repeats across the fabric too. (There may be more variation in the printing of the fabric, so it is nice to keep them all in a row, if possible.)

 

Next, I printed the Diamond A layout on scrap paper to make a window template.

I think this could work but a few of the diamonds might be a bit boring because there is quite a bit of background between the flowers.

 

I could print 8 identical sheets of fabric for blocks like this . . .

.

. . . and this . . .

 

. . . or I just print 4 identical sheets. . .

 

. . . or use up the “boring” bits with other sets!

Preparing a window template works better for me than acrylic templates because I can move the window template around before I decide how to position the first sheet of freezer paper, so I can get the most interesting diamonds possible.

 

This design uses 25 blocks, and 12 of them could be fussy cut star blocks.

You can design more quilts with the blocks in the free Electric Quilt project file for the Key West shapes.

Another option is to print 7.25 x 11.25, for 16 diamonds on each sheet instead of only 12. Then I could choose the 12 sets of 8 identical diamonds that I like the best.

The other 4 sets of diamonds could be used for something else. This approach could “waste” some fabric but it could make it possible to use a fabric for fussy cutting despite the boring bits in the design.

Reminder: The special intro price of $20 for the Key West Beauty 6 inch shape collection has been extended but it will end in a few days.
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Of course, you know that there are other suggested Custom Page Sizes too.

Love the lines. Quilt more!

COMING SOON

• COTSIM Mystery Clue #2

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Already in the case file:

• Announcing the new mystery
• Combo Layouts
• PDF showing fabric requirements (PDF, pages 1-7)
• Key West Beauty in Electric Quilt
• Countdown to the Mystery
• Download Clue #1 (PDF, pages 8-17)

Of course, this fussy cutting method works for ANY shapes, including the diamonds in the free shape collection (link below).

I’m still thinking about this fabric. It is washed and draped over the ironing board now.

What do you think?

Linda & Monkey

New to Inklingo? Order and download free shapes and start sewing in the next few minutes. Main Beginner’s Page There are triangles, diamonds, and squares in the free collection—great for dozens of different blocks.

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